Chris and Marieke opted for safe and sustainable
Chris van Dijk and Marieke Zweers converted an old garage into a stylish home, with plenty of space for their two boys Calle and Mika. During the renovation, their main focus was on sustainability. It was obvious they needed a Quooker.
Why did you get a Quooker?
Chris: ‘Our friends often ask us the same question. They ask: You guys have a Quooker? But that’s not very economical, is it? Not economical? For us, it’s the best thing we can do for the environment. If we were to use hot water from our central heating cylinder, it would first have to travel fifteen metres through the house, so we’d lose a huge amount of heat and water. That’s why we use only cold water from the water mains. For warm and boiling water, we have our Quooker COMBI.’
Was sustainability the only reason you got a Quooker?
Chris: ‘No, safety also played a role. As a child, I once knocked over a pot of boiling water on the stove and it splashed on top of me. I had really bad burns all over my chest. That’s not going to happen with our boys! They can’t knock a Quooker over, but it could happen with a kettle.’
The Quooker of
'If we were to use hot water from our central heating cylinder, it would first have to travel fifteen metres through the house, so we’d lose a huge amount of heat and water. That’s why we use only cold water from the water mains. For warm and boiling water, we have our Quooker COMBI.’
So how do you like your Quooker?
Marieke: ‘It’s perfect. Especially with a baby. Sterilising pacifiers, heating baby food in a double saucepan, preparing a bottle. Everything is ready really quickly.’
Chris: ‘Especially in the mornings and evenings, when it’s rush hour here with the children, it’s great if you can save some time.’
Marieke: ‘We now also have the Flex. The flexible hose is great for washing the dishes. You can easily spray off porridge that’s stuck to the plates.’
Who cooks in the family?
Marieke: ‘Chris does, but I’ve persuaded him to cook Paleolithic food. Very few carbohydrates, lots of steamed vegetables – for which we use the Quooker – and fruit, lean meat, fish and lots of nuts.’
Chris: ‘And when I make a staple meal of potatoes, meat and vegetables, it’s: boom, boiling water from the Quooker on the potatoes and broad beans, and dinner is ready before you know it.’
Marieke: ‘We eat lots of food straight from the farmer. Every month, we share a cow with our neighbours.’
Chris: ‘We’re involved in lots of sports. If you do a lot of sport, it feels strange to put junk food in your mouth. We’re about to leave for a holiday in Portugal. Six weeks of surfing. Lovely.’
What do you like to drink?
Marieke: ‘Coffee, but mainly lots of tea.’
Chris: ‘Yogi, detox, Thai tea, everything. But no loose-leaf tea, it’s such a hassle.’
Marieke: ‘I drink loose-leaf tea!’
Chris: ‘And water. In the mornings I fill a bottle of water from the Quooker before I leave the house, so I don’t have to buy bottled water when I’m out. Did you know that the footprint from bottled water is five thousand times bigger than water from the tap? So that’s why I do it. The water from the Quooker is just as pure as mineral water.’
Marieke: ‘It feels better to give that to the children rather than ordinary tap water.’